The Mackenrowe Murders: The Fool & The Faultless by Mo’Dayvia La’Beija

Book rating as per the author: PG-13 (questionable content for children under 13)

Book contains: Domestic violence; descriptive writing about sexual acts between consenting adults; explanations of how to engage in illegal/unethical/immoral activities that would be determined to be so by mainstream society; sexual violence against women/children/men

BookBios.com (BB.com): What is your book about?

Mo’Dayvia La’Beija (ML): Several serial killers are bent on destroying a certain type of victim; each for their own warped reasons. There is drama in the lives of the Mackenrowe family. They are part of an elite team of agents trying to catch the killers while dealing with their own flaws and twisted desires. In the midst of things a corrupted DA, destined for fame fights his strange addiction. A brilliant and beautiful defense attorney breaks her vow to defend a family member possibly wreaking her marriage. An abused beauty resurfaces finding true love.

BB.com: How did you pick the topic for The Mackenrowe Murders: The Fool & The Faultless?

ML: My book is based on true events. I also find the psychology behind serial killers and their motives intriguing. I balanced my novel with suspense, romance and comedy. It skips continents leading the readers into lush landscapes and brilliant sunsets on oceans. My book has several sub-plots. An abundance of action and adventure keeps the reader questing as they travel through each page.

BB.com: How is The Mackenrowe Murders: The Fool & The Faultless different from other books that cover the same or similar information?

ML: I have infused the plot with my intimate knowledge of the fashion world. My characters are charged with deep secrets and strong desires. The reader taps into the killers’ contradictory and dual personality. The antagonists become persons readers both love and hate. The protagonist has a hidden agenda.

Mo’Dayvia La’Beija

BB.com: What did you like most about writing this book?

ML: I became absorbed in the process of shaping the characters and the challenges of their lives. As any author knows the characters became my friend, they became real. I used several of my personal experiences with many of the characters.

An excerpt from The Mackenrowe Murders: The Fool & The Faultless:

Claudia’s eyes widened when she felt the sting from her thong ripped from her flesh. She screamed refusing to take her fingers from beneath his grip, which pressed against her throat. Her life flashed before her eyes: images of Ruth, Michelle, Junior and Todd. She was not ready to meet her father and it made her claw his face more. She tore deeper into his skin but he repeatedly slapped her. It was as if he felt nothing; he was so bent on getting what he wanted. The night masked his face and the moon was just a sliver. The stars hid their eyes while the clouds ran away. No one was there for her but her love for Todd had just begun and his for her. She wanted a good life with him and she was not going to allow this stranger to murder her dreams and kill her hopes. It made her fight even harder. He smiled and his stench crawled over her while the words he yelled soaked her face with glops of spit.“You’re a white whore! Aren’t you?” He waited for a reply. She screamed, writhing beneath him. Slap. Scream. Slap. Scream. “You whore! You’re asking for it . . . Yeahhhh, you like it.”She felt him against her inner thigh. He treated her as a predator playing with its prey before the final kill. He laughed, “You’re not giving up so easily, I see . . . It just makes the victory that much sweeter.” He sniffed closely at her then licked the right side of her soft face. “Ah, you smell so sweet and taste even sweeter.”Claudia used her free hand and grabbed him by the hair then pulled as hard as she could. He screamed, “Bitch!”“Takes one to know—”He punched her in the face. She refused to let go. Still, she kept her three fingers underneath his hand that clenched her throat, the other grappled at his hair. This was a battle to the end and all five feet and seven inches of Claudia was not about to give in. She screamed in his face, she screamed at the moon, she screamed at the sea, its waves then she screamed at the blinded stars and finally . . . she felt his weight quickly lift off her body. In the dark, she saw nothing yet she heard a few hard thumps and a couple of grunts and groans then a familiar voice called to her from out of the darkness.“Claudia?”In tears, coughing and gagging she could barely answer. “Yes, where are you?” Terrified yet relieved she trembled. “Todd?”“Are you okay?” he asked from the dark distance with his knee dented into the perpetrator’s back. Todd had the predator’s hands snatched behind him.“Where are you?”“I’m here.” She could smell his aftershave.“Give me your bra.”Hands trembling furiously she took it off, placed her hand out and he took it from her. Minutes later, the dancing red and white lights crowded the beach. Round beaming lights from the officers’ flashlights searched over the sands from the call to police. An ambulance rode slowly behind the officers with their high beams on. Claudia could not move. Although she felt safe in Todd’s arms, a sense of her still remained paralyzed.

“We found them! They’re over here.” Police yelled over the cool sand approaching them with their flashlights shining down on the couple.“He’s over there.” Todd pointed holding Claudia tightly. Officers snatched the unconscious body up and shined the light across his face. “So you like raping girls . . . you coward. They’re gonna love you in jail.”“Over here.” The other officer waved the ambulance toward the cuddling couple. They sat on the wet sands with her between his open legs and the waves slowly rolling near them.“She’ll be okay. The medics will take care of her.”“Okay.” Todd agreed still holding her tight. He kissed the top of her head.“I’m not going in any ambulance!”“You have to . . . its procedure, plus we need to know that you’re okay.”“No! No ambulance!”“Miss, you were raped and nearly killed.”“I wasn’t raped!” she screamed turning further into Todd’s chest. “Take me to the hotel.”“But Claudia—”“Take me back, Todd!”“Okay, okay. We’re going back to the room, but I’m having my personal doctor come and check you out. And that’s not up for discussion.” He lifted her in his arms then headed for the boardwalk.

* * *

After an elegant eight course dinner at Argenziano’s Restaurant, Mark and Michelle made it in time to the Gallo Theater. It was a landmark in the downtown district of Rio, where the finest of the elite society brewed over the arts. There, Michelle enjoyed the ballet. The night’s performance with Brazilian dancer Marcelo Gomes had astounded her. When the show finished diversified tourists, citizens and cops covered the aged marble stairs. People were dressed in their best. Lines of stretch limousines remained parked along the slightly crowded sidewalk waiting patiently for their owners. The smell of old money coupled with tender young arm candy saturated the area. Mark had made the night magical. Caught up in the moment she gazed up into his eyes and thanked him. He smiled lightly tracing the side of her face with his index finger. Her eyes said what she could not, yet being so close their breaths fondled together in warmth. Mark eased closer to her face. Without moving her awaiting lips, she knowingly wanted to taste him—only centimeters away.“Dr. Mackenrowe?” An officer rushed up to them breaking the moment he had so desperately longed for. If there was a moment in time he would kill, it would have been then he thought to himself.“Yes,” he replied turning toward the officer. Michelle stepped back.“You have been requested from the captain.”He tried hiding his disappointment and disgust. “For what?”“There’s been another rape at the beach . . . this time they caught the guy.”Mark and Michelle’s eyes met and for a quick moment they shared the same horrible thought—Junior.“Who was it?” Mark asked.“We still don’t know, he’s unconscious and he has no identification.”Without a word, he cupped Michelle’s hand into his own then headed for their limousine. “Is he at headquarters?”“Yes, but captain said you are to report to the Sheraton Barra Hotel, the penthouse.”“Dear God! Claudia.” Michelle gasped covering her mouth. Mark guided her into the limousine and follow her, the officer finished, “The victim’s fiancé has requested you.”

Frantically collecting her phone, she noticed six missed calls. She quickly rang Claudia’s cell. No answer. She tried again, nothing. Mark rubbed her hand. “Try the front desk.”“Thanks, I can’t think straight.”“It’s going to be okay.” He reassured her, telling the chauffeur to drive faster. “Claudia is a tough cookie.”“Good evening, Sheraton Barra, may I help you?”“Yes the penthouse please.”The clerk noticed the desperation in Michelle voice. “Please hold.”

Ring. Ring. Ring. No answer. She hung up. “I can’t get through. Nobody is answering the phone.”“We’ll be there in three minutes. She has Todd with her, it’s going to be fine . . . please trust me on this.” He pulled her closer to him; embracing her within his rock-like arms.“I can’t bear the thought of her going through what the others have.”“Claudia is tough. One thing I have learned about her is she has the balls to back up that ‘Mouthpiece’ of hers.

The limousine screeched to a sudden stop in front of the Sheraton Barra, Michelle did not wait for the chauffeur to come around and open the door for her. There was no time. Frantically she popped out from the back then rushed through the rotating glass doors. Mark was on her heels. They made it straight to the elevator. It felt as if it took forever to make it to the top floor. When the doors opened there were police scattered throughout the entire living room. Tidbit chatter stopped as all eyes shot to them. They stepped off the rising steel box. Ruth left Scott on the balcony and hurried over. She cried, “I called you.”“I just received your messages . . . My cellular phone was off because of the ballet. What happened?”“It’s horrible. He nearly killed her.” Ruth wept into Scott’s hanky. Michelle held her. “Shh, she strong . . . she’ll be okay.” She tried believing her own words.“Who’s in charge?” Mark stepped away from Michelle and further into what had resembled a herd of blue cattle. The police officers again stopped their idle conversation and peered over at Mark who looked out of place with his tuxedo and formal opera scarf.“I am.” A lieutenant approached him. He did not like Mark and he had made it known on several occasions. Mark had dual citizenship, both in the US and Brazil which irked the lieutenant. Mark being in bed with the FBI as well as an agent of the Federal Police of Brazil made him hate Mark even more, “I have this under control . . . isn’t this kind of crime a bit beneath you, doctor?” he asked sarcastically.“I was summoned here by the victim’s fiancé. Where is he?” Mark ignored the lieutenant altogether, he continued scanning the room. Todd was not easy to miss being almost six-feet-four.“I’m right here.” Todd emerged from the bedroom and placed his hand on Mark’s shoulder. He took Mark aside then pushed his wavy brown hair backwards. The worry and distraught look in his greenish amber eyes told Mark everything.“What happened?”“I just took a second to run to the bathroom. I told her. I can’t believe it—I just can’t believe it. I should have made her come with me,” Todd said in one breath.“Okay, slow down.”“But you know Claudia; she doesn’t do anything unless she wants to . . . God! I’m stupid.”“Listen, first calm down and explain this to me.” He gestured with his hand.“While shopping we saw your brother and Claudia flipped out. She went into an outrage. I had to calm her down. She kept screaming for security.”Confusion claimed his face, yet mystery snatched his eyes, “My brother?”“Yes, he left upstairs to the second floor; I guess the jewelry department. I am not sure, but I got her out of there. We stopped and had some drinks and then we came to the hotel to have dinner. After, we arrived upstairs and we showered and change. We were trying to catch the sunset. We made it downstairs but ten minutes later, I needed to go to the bathroom—really bad. I asked her to come with me because of the strings of murders in the area. She said she will be fine, it was still light outside and the murders were taken place by Copacabana Palace. I could not wait any longer. The faster I leave the faster I can get back of course she pointed that out, which made sense. Therefore, I left. When I came back, it was dark—it was only ten minutes or less. I came out it was dark. When I cross the boardwalk, I heard the screaming. I followed the screams. That’s when I snatched him off her; knocked him out. Then I subdued him with her bikini top and waited for the police to arrive.”“Is she all right?”“She’s acting as if nothing is wrong,” Todd replied looking toward the rear bedroom.“Denial,” Mark announced. “Did he rape her?”“She said no, but her bikini bottom was ripped off, so I don’t know and she refused to go to the hospital.”“What? She has to be checked out.” Mark ordered.“I’m taking care of it now. My personal doctor is on his way over here.”“Okay, that’s Good.”In the vast bedroom, Claudia sat up. Although exhausted and frightened, she showed no emotions. Ruth was not sure what to say besides asking how was she doing. Scott asked if he could get her anything. Claudia replied with one word answers such as, ‘fine’, ‘okay’, ‘no’. Her hair was a mess; grains of sands still fell from it. Reddish blue bruises covered one side of her face. It looked as if someone repeatedly bashed her left eye and cheek. She retained a swollen busted lip. She sat propped up against the pillows wearing a small white tank top with a pair of Todd’s jean. Silence sat with her on one side of the bed where she held onto a pillow. The lights were out with the exception of the bedside lamp. Not only did she look as if she had been raped but her behavior spelled raped victim. She was silent and withdrawn. Michelle, Scott, and Ruth did not know how to react. Fear for triggering a nervous breakdown—they had to watch their words carefully. One thing they all knew—she needed them there even if it meant to sit in silence. The support was necessary and vital for their friendship and more importantly for her sanity. Unfortunately, they had to leave when Dr. Weinstein entered the room to examine her. Again, she refused. She ranted and cussed at the idea of another strange man touching her—one was enough for the night—she yelled it was the last thing she needed or wanted. Todd had everyone removed from the bedroom. With kind and concerned words, he gently persuaded her into agreeing to the examination. He promised her he would stay and hold her hand through the entire process.